History of Salvatore Ferragamo

After recently learning a little about the history for Ferragamo in class we visited the Headquarters and learned a lot more about the rich background of the Italian company. Salvatore Ferragamo joined his brother in Boston in 1914 working in a large shoe shop. While he believed the shoes were of fine quality he felt they left a lot to be desired. So in 1923 he moved to California where the birth of cinema was beginning. He started to design shoes for the movies and soon the actresses were wearing his shoes off set because they were so beautiful. The movie business offered him the ability to experiment and make all different types of shoes from the cowboy boots to the roman sandals.  He was known as the shoemaker to the starts and opened the Hollywood Boot Shop.

Due to high demand in 1927 he returned to Italy and grouped 60 craftsmen’s, creating a human assembly line. He was very avant-garde and created new styles such as the patchwork shoe. Despite his success Ferragamo found himself bankrupt in 1933. He decided to regroup and purchased the headquarters that are still used today in 1938.  Although Italy was under fascist rule and had sanctions from Mussolini this propelled Ferragamo to thrive. He had to be more original and resourceful then ever. This lead to the famous shoe made out of metal chocolate wrappings. He also experimented with new materials such as raffia and cork.

By 1947 he was recognized for all of his hard work by winning the “Neiman Marcus Award”, fashion’s oscar, with the invisible sandal. This surreal design saw the passage from the war years into a new and thriving decade. One year later the first Ferragamo New York store opened on Park Avenue. In 1949 Ferragamo expanded from shoes and the first bag was created. In 1965 full production began on handbags and ready to wear under the supervision of Giovanna Gentile Ferragamo. Soon this maison had turned into an international company. In 1995 the Museum opened and the success of the brand continues today with presence in 90+ countries and 593 doors.

By: Marisa Silber